Her Voice
by Tru Mel Meiko Mei Ling
Summary: Set at the very end of Galerians: Ash. In his frozen state, Rion remembers the one who truly cared for him and hears her voice until the very end.


_Her Voice_

Galerians-Rion x Lilia

--

Weightless, yet stable.

Pure, yet tainted.

Once fueled by raging emotion, now at peace.

Deep within Dorothy's mainframe, two entities were left to remain at a standstill in a surrounding void of intangibility.

The virus program, given the name of the late scientist's son of the same name, Rion.

As well as the invoker of the fallen Dorothy; a being given name in which its color serves opposite to his chaste creation, Ash.

Both subsistences remained frozen in place; the formats of their data carried out. Their cries set in an eternal silent screams.

Both had battled, yet only one succeeded.

The Galerian victor continued to glare at Ash with eyes of empathy and determination while his hands clutched the subdued other's face.

Dark eyes gazing into oblivion in a hushed shock gave hint to the suffering of Ash's torment. But only Rion truly understood the other's inner conflict within his systems.

Yet while they connected on a level only they could achieve and decipher, there was a deeper turmoil that Rion left behind that Ash could never begin to fathom.

In the recesses of his mind, images of the one that cared the most for him fluttered into existence within him.

One with soft brown eyes, bright auburn locks that lightly whispered above her shoulders and a smile curved with warmth. Once those lips parted, one of the sweetest sounds Rion had secretly loved to hear flew airily from betwixt them.

"_Rion"_, they would call delicately, adoring the very syllables of his name and his presence keen to it, _"Rion, I'm so glad you're all right."_

'Lilia...' the blond Galerian reminisced inwardly.

The young girl that believed in him and sought out to reach him 6 years earlier had been right at his side when those years passed.

Lilia Pascalle.

In her eyes, he was never a copy; never an original. To her, he was simply Rion. The only Rion she held dear.

"_You are Rion. You are the real Rion. There can only be one of you."_

She was never asked to follow alongside him by his own desire. She always pursued him from the drive of her own heart.

"_I am the Lilia that loves you. Do you believe me, Rion?"_

The determination she held and the belief she had in him spoke volumes to Rion. But he never revealed such truths to her.

His focus to protect her, along with the rest of mankind, was so strong that even he overlooked how precious she really was to him.

"_I'm so happy that you're with me, now..."_

But his self-appointed exile with Ash in the world of data had terminated any chance of telling her how he really felt.

But the pain he suffered still stung freshly throughout his being.

The day he found her gasping fatal breaths of uranium-lined air beneath the factory, he knew she was accepting her final moments.

And because of this, before his final confrontation with Ash, Rion left his synthetic body, and any hope of Lilia's recovery, behind.

Now, he had begun to regret his actions. Now he began to have doubts of knowing if Lilia actually survived or not.

But, none of that mattered anymore.

In his current state, he was incapable of being any help to her at all.

Upon choosing his final destiny, he was condemned to remain in suspended animation with his "enemy" forever.

But throughout the bleak existence and seemingly infinite passing of time, Rion could still hear her. He could still feel her presence.

Or at least, he kept telling himself that.

"_Rion, I believe in you."_

If movement was granted to him at this moment, his features would lapse into remorse.

Although he had fulfilled her wishes, ultimately he could not save her.

Yet perhaps, she did not want to be saved.

"_Trust me, Rion."_

And as always, accompanied with each tender tone of her voice he heard, was a reassuring smile.

That reflection of comfort dressed across her lips led him to wonder if she had always gazed at him that way or if it were merely an illusion he wished to remember seeing.

Either way, the way he remembered Lilia was of his own accord and his own decision and was nothing short of affectionate.

To Rion, what seemed like an eternity passed.

But within that eternity, came a message.

A message in the form of the former child mechanical prodigy he had left behind that was now an adult.

And by his hand, Rion was given transient liberation.

"P-Pat?" the Galerian questioned, barely recognizing his own voice from acknowledging his frozen existence.

The other man smiled faintly. "Yes, I've come to rescue you, Rion."

Unfixed green eyes fleeted before settling on the human form before him.

"How...how can you be here?"

"10 years have passed since your battle with Ash, mankind has reached a level of technology that has eliminated dangerous programs like Dorothy,"he continued firmly. Then paused as the triumphant timbre in his voice lowered. "Releasing you from your frozen condition and returning you to the real world was... Doctor Lilia's last wish..."

Shock and despair wrought his being. He felt as if those words alone had torn the slither of sanity he held within him to shreds.

But the sound of her voice still remained; whispering against his ear in soft melodies, the most beautiful sound of his name resounded in her breathy tone.

"_Rion..."_

Eyes widening, Rion absorbed the desolate words Pat spoke and contemplated them.

"L-Lilia's...last wish...?"

"Yes, I'm sorry. But two years after the battle, she passed away from radiation sickness. I became a computer engineer so I could continue Dr Lilia's work."

The news was devastating to Rion. But it was also the outcome he had expected.

At least she was no longer undergoing days of suffering from the contamination, nor from the vile poisoning of being without him

And if she were freed from her conviction, he would want to embrace redemption as well.

With her.

Brief, yet delicate images passed behind Rion's eyes.

Instances that could have been, should have been, that could never be.

He imagined approaching her right after one of his trips to the data world.

He imagined stepping down from the pronged platform and sliding his slender arms behind her back.

Her innocent surprise would be replaced with joy and the buildup of deeply buried passions would be set free from his touch. Her suppressed emotions would be sent soaring from her burdened shoulders to the skies above from the brush of his lips against hers.

The shape of his name would tumble from her delicate lips in a hushed whisper between kisses while she battled within herself with the reasoning and logic of the situation versus the sheer yearning of it.

Both would be eager, but hesitant in the discovery of the other as each kiss would be candid, but timid.

Mild caresses would tickle her skin and send tingles up her spine while light sounds of delight would slip from her parted lips and encourage Rion further.

He would rely on her to guide him through her body language while he allowed his cautious hands to roam her curves.

Steadily, he would familiarize himself with her form, her being, all of her.

What they would share would not be carnal by any means, but honest and heartfelt affection.

Comfort.

Love.

Need for the other in the most tender way possible.

With each kiss, embrace and the exchange of meek confessions, their cloth confinements would disappear one by one.

Once the trappings had vanished, the two lovers would hold the other dearly; cherishing the tactility of the other's closeness.

She would be warm, delicate, while he would be cold; able to be fully taken into the warmth of her arms, her touch, and her inner being as well.

Like a sparkling crystal clear lake rippling in the sun, Lilia would lead Rion to her fullness and aid him generously into her depths; never ceasing, constant.

Throwing away his embarrassment and awkwardness, Rion would brave every rush, every bend and every engulfing power her currents would send his way to continue to be close to her.

To continue to relish in the essence that was Lilia Pascalle.

Delicate cries would call to him while she clung to him.

Her workspace terminal would be pushed to the edge of its table as the two of them indulged in an experience that was unmatched in this world and only sought rivalry with the vibrant heavens beyond.

Familiarity and hunger would overtake them, sending them into a dizzying spiral of passion and desire.

Fingers would link, tufts of air in rugged pants would brush against their sweat-beaded skin, names would be uttered, shouted.

And in the height of their pleasurable copulation, all reality would cease to exist as their powerful emotions were set free and the darkness of their shut eyes bloomed into a bright, welcoming soothing light.

Indescribable calm would sweep over their bodies and the sudden realization of the new depth between them would cause them to grasp each other for dear life.

The truthful whisper of love would sigh from her lips while she would rest her head on his shoulder.

Her hair, a matted mixture of a garish blur and scattered strands would brush against his chin while his arms would give her lithe body another loving squeeze.

He had never brought himself to say it before, but if he had the chance, perhaps he would.

Perhaps, he would tell her that he loved her back.

Instead, his illusionary diversion from the weighty reality Pat's words had embedded into his mind began to clear.

Rion's expression wavered from stark awe and impact to acceptance. But within that acceptance, Rion again could hear her voice.

"_Rion, promise me. Promise me that you'll return."_

Finally, he found his unborn words.

"Th-thank you...Pat. But I don't want... to return to reality... anymore."

He had made his final decision. Like Lilia. But his option had only differed slightly from the outcome she had suffered.

"Please..." Rion continued, choosing his words carefully, as painful as they were, "delete all traces of Ash's data...and...of mine."

"Ah, but--"

"Please, Pat."

Fearing the answer, but agreeing with it, Pat nodded slightly. "I understand..." Lowering his head, he adverted his gaze from the dejected Galerian and prepared to leave.

Until Rion's staggering voice regained his divided attention.

"...The...future... What... is it like...?"

Pat smiled mildly at that. "Well, now everyone believes in a more distant future."

At least mankind was safe. In comparison to his and Lilia's sacrifice, he was certain the humans would consider their act a fleeting one. If they bothered to give it a second thought at all.

Yet, knowing their safety was not only his dutiful concern due to Ash and the Last Galerians, but to Lilia as well, was satisfactory enough for him.

"Good. ... That's... good..."

Silently agreeing with his response, and also the mutual feeling between them to conclude anything related to the race of Galerians and Dorothy, Pat slowly turned his back to Rion and began to leave.

Once again alone with the confined Ash still in his grip, Rion, for the first time in years when Lilia was still alive, did he feel at ease.

Finally being put to rest, his heavy lids began to crumble to a close.

"_Rion. Whatever happens, please return to me..."_

"... ... Lilia..." he whispered, almost pleaded. His voice returning to his natural consistency for a brief final moment.

"_Promise me..."_

"I... always hear..."

"_Rion..."_

"...your...voice..." he trailed off as the structure of his data body, along with Ash's, began to deteriorate byte by byte as his last wish was executed.

"_Promise me, Rion."_

Hearing her before the last bites of his data vanished into nothingness, Rion could do nothing for her nor himself.

He could never keep his promise.

But he always heard her voice.

-Mel


End file.
